Socceroos players express human rights concerns over Qatar’s FIFA World Cup

16 Socceroos players, including captain Mat Ryan, have issued a strongly worded collective statement of protest over the human rights record of Qatar, the country that will host the FIFA World Cup as of next month.

In advance of their participation in the tournament, the Australian men’s national team this morning released a video on social media in which the players delivered a series of concerns about the “suffering” of migrant workers in Arabian Gulf nation and the inability of LGBTI+ people in Qatar “to love the person that they choose”.

Ryan and teammate Jackson Irvine have previously aired their individual views over Qatar’s hosting of the tournament, but this is the first time a collective players’ voice has been heard about the hosting.

In voicing their concerns, the Socceroos become the first competing team in the 2022 World Cup to collectively share their concerns about the controversial hosting.

Ryan and Irvine were joined in the video by fellow Socceroos Bailey Wright, Jamie Maclaren, Nick D’Agostino, Craig Goodwin, Danny Vukovic, Andrew Redmayne, Mathew Leckie, Mitchell Duke, Mitch Langerak, Denis Genreau, Cameron Devlin, Adam Taggart, Kye Rowles and Alex Wilkinson, the President of Professional Footballers Australia (PFA).

Calling for an “effective remedy” for migrant workers and the decriminalisation of same-sex relationships, the video message, delivered line-by-line by 16 players and supported by the broader Australian playing group.

The Socceroos’ video was released alongside an open letter from the players’ union the PFA and a statement from the governing body Football Australia referring to the “suffering” felt by workers and their families that has been caused by the tournament, which it says “cannot be ignored”.

A message from our @Socceroos on the @FIFAWorldCup #SupportingThePlayers pic.twitter.com/bUqW2pne1w

— Professional Footballers Australia (@thepfa) October 26, 2022

The statement said that while “genuine progress had been made” in helping improve workers’ rights in Qatar, they now believe that the World Cup was associated with harm done to people that have made the tournament possible - the migrant workers.

It also acknowledged player concerns for the welfare of the LGBTI+ community in Qatar.

Significantly, the players expressed how values define their sport, and that when those values are absent, or if football has caused harm, they should make a stand.

The statement also said the players recognise that their views may be unpopular with some - either believing they have not gone far enough, or others demanding they stick to football, and stay out of politics.

It also made clear that players did not award the FIFA World Cup to Qatar and had no say in its delivery.

The open letter was also critical of FIFA saying that in the “absence of leadership from administrators tasked with awarding hosting rights and managing the tournament, it has fallen to players, coaches and fans to provide moral leadership”.

The Socceroos also noted that they want the lasting legacy of this World Cup to be reforms of Qatar’s labour laws.

They have joined the world players’ association, FIFPRO, and the Building and Wood Workers’ International in their call for the establishment of a Migrant Workers Resource Centre to provide a voice and support for vulnerable migrants.

On Qatar’s LGBTI+ community, the statement said the sport must aspire to establish and embed these rights because without doing so it cannot claim to be inclusive.

The open letter also addressed player concerns in Australia itself and called on the sport to develop its own human rights policy and strategy.

It said this would lead to the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, being hosted in Australia and New Zealand to set a high standard for human rights at mega-sporting events.

Football Australia, in its statement, also acknowledged the recent legislative reforms in Qatar but backed the players’ call for a migrant workers’ centre to protect the rights of workers beyond the World Cup, and also expressed hope for a long-term change in how LGBTQ people are treated in the country.

Its statement noted “as the most multicultural, diverse, and inclusive sport in our country, we believe everyone should be able to feel safe and be their true authentic selves,” FA’s statement said. “Whilst we acknowledge the highest levels of assurances given by HH Amir of Qatar and the President of FIFA that LGBTI+ fans will be safely welcomed in Qatar, we hope that this openness can continue beyond the tournament.”

Players from nine European countries, including England, have also committed to wearing ‘One Love’ armbands, which are intended to protest Qatar’s laws around same-sex relationships, even if they are not approved by FIFA.

During World Cup qualification matches, Germany, the Netherlands and Norway (Norway did not qualify for the finals) wore pre-match T-shirts promoting human rights.

Click here to view the open letter The World Cup and Qatar: An Open Letter from the PFA.

Images: The Socceroos in their protest video (top) and qualfying for the 2022 World Cup (below, credit: Football Australia).